On the evening of April 28, 1814, Napoleon boarded the barge of the frigate Brave. The Emperor of France was about to be exiled, and he remained emperor at the time of his exile. But his empire, which stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to the Baltic Sea, has now shrunk to a small 224-square-kilometer island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, 10 kilometers from Italy. Under the terms of the Treaty of Fontainebleau, Napoleon Bonaparte abdicated from the throne of the Emperor of France and became Emperor of Elba.
As Napoleon prepared to leave for exile on the island of Elba, he bid farewell to his guards at Fontainebleau
The smallest empire, the best emperor
At the height of his power, Napoleon ruled over 2 million square kilometers of land, and now he has only 224 square kilometers, but he wants to make it the best governed 224 square kilometers in the world.
As Emperor of Elba, Napoleon's schedule was packed. He would get up at 4 o'clock to read urgent documents, give letters, check official documents, then go for a walk in the garden, take a nap, and then he would ride his horse around the island to see the construction projects he had initiated. At 10 or 11 o'clock, it's breakfast a little later, followed by a little bit of reading, bathing, and talking to subordinates. Around 4 p.m., Napoleon usually rode out in his lightly cloaked carriage, stopping anytime and anywhere along the way to speak to the Elbas who wished to express their demands to the emperor.
It is almost evening when we return to the Murini Palace, and Napoleon will receive visitors (there are constantly tourists who want to see for themselves the emperor who has ruled Europe for so long, many of them from Britain). Dinner takes place between 6 and 8 a.m., after which he plays cards or chess with his mother (her son who came to Elba to accompany her exile) and goes to bed between 9 and 10 a.m.
These satirical cartoons, used to mobilize the British against Napoleon, did not stop writing because of their exile to Elba
For an emperor with constant energy, the biggest challenge in Elba was obviously boredom. To avoid this state of affairs, he began to pay attention to the tiny details of this small kingdom: he organized the collection and cleaning of garbage, passed laws on manure collection, prescribed fees to be paid to gardeners, improved customs duties and excise taxes, drew up plans for irrigating the plains of Lacona, ordered afforestation in the valleys and planted olive trees, established a road and bridge inspectorate, and ordered that no more than 5 children should sleep in one bed. But, in a way, Napoleon felt that all the actions thrown into this small kingdom were futile.
The Elba flag designed by Napoleon
To go or to stay?
The Congress of Vienna in November 1814 shaped the future of Europe. The situation soon became clear that the European powers did not intend to let Napoleon stay on the island of Elba. Although cut off from official communication channels with France and Europe, Napoleon opened up a secret intelligence channel where he could learn about the situation and political movements in France, and he also listened to the latest news politely and fully through the high-level tourists who gathered on the island of Elba to see Napoleon's dignity.
Whether Napoleon will survive to be transferred to more distant penal colonies is entirely unknown. The ominous rumors of the assassination reached Napoleon's ears through wire reports, leaving him restless and having to change rooms every night to sleep. By the end of 1814, he would leave the Murini Palace only accompanied by armed guards.
Leo von Kerenzer's late painting Napoleon exiled to Elba
We do not know exactly when Napoleon decided to return to France to regain the throne, because this decision was hidden in the depths of his heart, and he was silent in the face of his companions. In the first two months of 1815, he made his decision. On 16 February, Campbell traveled to Italy (to see a doctor or a lover, or both) and the coast became unimpeded – he was on the Partridge, which the British stationed on Elba to monitor the entire island. On the same day, Napoleon ordered that his brig, the Impermanence, be supplied and painted in the shape of a British ship. Apparently this disguise was prescient, as the Partridge returned a week later and docked in port Ferrajo on the evening of 23 February. Campbell was still in Italy, and he first sent the ship back to Elba to see if everything was all right, to see if the eagle was still in his lair. As soon as he saw the Partridge landing, Napoleon ordered the Impermanence to go to sea and arranged for his soldiers to work in the garden around his villa, making everything look as usual. On 24 February, the captain of the Partridge took some tourists ashore to check whether Napoleon was still in the palace, and the result was satisfactory, so he took anchor and set sail again. As a naval officer, he seemed to be too inattentive to look at the color, which was really incredible.
Napoleon left Elba to make the last gamble of his life
The next day, Napoleon met with officials on the island and told them he was leaving, setting the way for Sunday evening, Feb. 26. At 7 p.m., Napoleon left the Mullini Palace, and the crowds gathered around his carriage all the way to the port. Accompanied by a small group of ships, Napoleon was ferryed to the Impermanence and sailed away from Elba. There were also six ships on either side of the Impermanent brig. This small fleet carried 1,000 men, 40 horses and 4 cannons. Napoleon tried to win back France with such an army.
Napoleon stood on the deck of the Impermanence, looked in the direction of France and said, "The dice have been rolled down, and the only way forward is to move forward." "He's ready to fight for power one last time. In the gentle wind, the fleet advanced slowly. At the moment when the sun rose on March 1, 1815, Napoleon saw the horizon of France, which he had been thinking about day and night during his exile.
(Source: Napoleon, Successful Revolutionary, Failed Conqueror)